Sunday, January 18, 2009

Arch's Wine, Flyboy Red

Somerset Ridge Vineyard and Winery

Arch went to the vineyard whenever he felt up to going. During harvest, he was sitting under a tree watching the pickers and "tasting" wine ; at "the crush" he was right there, adding the rice hulls to keep the crushed grapes from packing down too much and "tasting" wine; at bottlings he was right there "tasting" wine. Because of his contributions to these activities, Dennis Reynolds, the owner and wine maker , bestowed the title of "Vice President of Tasting" on my husband, Arch Tucker.

I was with Arch the last 10 years of his life and we often laughed that it was a good thing I wasn't with him the first 70 years of his life....he would never have lived to be 80! Arch was known as

a "Flyboy" in every sense of the word.....a fighter pilot in the United States Air Force for 33 years, he developed habits, actually, he may have been the one to set the standards, that were typical of tough, hard flying, hard partying pilots. He joined the military right out of Wyandotte High School in Kansas City, Kansas, in 1944, only to become a veteran at a very young age when the war ended in both Europe and the Pacific. He returned to Kansas, went to Washburn University in Topeka, and when the US Army Air Corps became the United States Air Force, he ran to the front of the line to enlist. Being a Flyboy at heart, he always knew he was meant to fly.

While Arch was flying over Korea, dog-fighting with MIGs on a daily basis, I was a 10 year old in Columbia, Missouri. I will never forget the first time I heard a jet fighter plane, it flew right over our backyard and scared the hell out of me! I actually grabbed the dog and we went under the picnic table!

Arch flew in the Korean War and the Vietnam War, and I loved to tease him that we actually lost both. Of course, then I had to listen to an hour long rant about that "SOB Robert McNamara"!

But win or loose, Arch stayed in the Air Force, stood tall, stood proud.

Arch died of cancer in December, 2006. Not long after, Dennis started planning a wine to honor his father-in-law, Arch. The result....Flyboy Red, a wine that Arch would have been so proud of. The label is pictured above. The wonderful photograph was taken in Korea as Arch was climbing out of his F-86 Sabre Jet as he completed his 100th mission! His smile says it all! I bet he went into the officers club and had a "taste"!

If you are looking for a mellow red wine, not too dry, Arch would be delighted for you to try Flyboy Red! In fact, he would appreciate it if you would have one for him............